By Farhiya M. Farah

By Jeff Todd

“Your eyesight is the first to go.” “It’s just part of getting older.” Such phrases of acceptance are often heard as we enter our 40s and 50s. Yes, our eyes—our vision—will invariably change as we age; however, through early detection of eye disease and other problems and access to affordable treatment options (including glasses and contacts), our eyesight, and thus our quality of life, doesn’t have to be significantly altered.

By Jim Emerman and Anne Colby

One 74 year old man, who is chronically disabled, is running two large organizations, both of which he founded. One provides international relief to disaster areas throughout the world; the other provides health care assessment and support to American Indian tribes in the southeastern United States.

Each year we invite contributions to AgeBlog from members of the Aging in America Conference community who will be making a presentation at the conference. For 2017, we received a rich series of contributions covering issues ranging from use of acupuncture for pain remediation to the impact of aging on the workforce, and many other topics.

Below is a list of AgeBlog articles from 2017 Aging in America Conference presenters.

By Deborah Bier

Do you know someone who lives with dementia through your profession or personally? If so, it's likely at some point their cognitive health has made you concerned for your own. You forget an old friend's birthday... you can't find your car keys, again... you forget the very item you went to the grocery store to buy. Do you wonder if there is something seriously wrong with you? When is forgetting part of the normal course of life? When does forgetting become a reason to worry? How can we tell the difference?

By Rachel Pagones

Pain, you could say, is the great equalizer. Young athletes, women in childbirth, sedentary office workers, manual laborers, old athletes—everyone deals with it at some time. Often it goes away on its own; sometimes you need a little help: aspirin, acetaminophen, liniments, or the like. In many instances, it’s no big deal; it goes away, and you forget about it.

By Priscilla Rogers

According to the American Community Survey, about 1 in 50 Americans experiences “serious trouble seeing, even when wearing glasses or contacts.” For Americans over age 55, the rate of vision difficulty is 1 in 20, and for those over age 85, the rate approaches 1 in 5 (U.S. Census Bureau, 2015).